


Body Issue(s)

by Lord_Byron_Mudkippington



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Supportive partner, body issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-08
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-10-06 21:30:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17352950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lord_Byron_Mudkippington/pseuds/Lord_Byron_Mudkippington
Summary: Rin gets a surprising offer to be part of a magazine photoshoot, but she has to deal with some issues of her own if she's going to accept it.





	Body Issue(s)

Rin wiped the sweat from her brow, smiling triumphantly as she looked over her coach's shoulder at the stopwatch in her hand. She'd knocked off half a second from her hundred meter dash time. Her previous time had already been the best on the team, but it was exciting that she was able to push herself even further than that. A couple of her fellow runners milled around to look at her time, smiling and high fiving her with congratulations. Her heart was beating in her ears, and it had never sounded so melodic.

"Alright Hoshizora, that was a hell of a time. You even made me a bit proud." Rin laughed as a couple of her teammates clapped her on her shoulders. "Just remember, everyone: the Olympics are right around the corner, and each one of you needs to be in the best shape of your life. The competition will not be easy, and our veteran runners can let you know that firsthand." Rin nodded to herself, remembering the stories of Olympic glory and worry she'd heard from some of her older teammates. All of the training she'd gone through could only help so much when you were standing in the blocks with thousands and thousands of people watching you. It would likely be the most thrilling, nerve-wracking adrenaline rush she'd ever experience. "We'll have the home field advantage this time, so remember to give your all for your country. Got that?"

"Sir yes sir!" Rin saluted at their coach, getting laughs from her teammates. Even the coach smiled slightly, waving her clipboard at Rin. With that, practice was over for the day. Everybody left the track together, chatting amicably as they headed for the lockers. Once inside, most of the women headed for their lockers, stripping off their workout clothes so they could grab a quick shower before they went home. Rin, however, didn't join them. She'd never felt comfortable getting undressed in front of others, an issue that stemmed from her childhood feelings of inadequacy. Even with a bunch of fellow runners who had similar body types to her, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was just too different. It wasn't true, but the mind was a powerful thing. Not always when she'd needed it to be when she'd been in school, but it was just generally powerful. She considered all of her teammates to be close friends, but it didn't change how she felt about her own body.

"Hoshizora, a moment?" Before she could make a quick exit for the sanctity of her own shower, the coach called for her. She followed her into her office, unsure of what this was about. Maybe she was just going to congratulate her again on the record time she'd had. The coach sat down at her desk, and Rin stood on the opposite end, waiting to hear what was going on. "I just got a very interesting phone call concerning you."

"Uh, okay? What was it about?" She gulped, tapping her foot nervously. She didn't know what this 'interesting phone call' could've possibly been about. It didn't sound good, but she couldn't think of anything she'd done wrong. She hadn't gone out and gotten drunk enough to embarrass the team or done anything illegal. Maybe it wasn't bad at all, but then again, she couldn't think of anything really good that she'd done either. Nothing except for that great run time, but that was something the coach had seen with her own eyes. She didn't need a call to tell her about that. Gods, what could it be about?

"You've heard of Athletics Monthly, I'm sure." She nodded. Of course she had. It was one of the biggest sporting magazines in the country. Any athlete who said they didn't pick up a copy that had themselves in it was probably a liar. She admittedly had a couple copies framed at her place that had pictures of her inside them. It was nice little ego boost for any athlete. "Well, they called asking about getting in contact with you for a photoshoot they want to put in their Olympic issue."

"What? For real?" Rin's jaw dropped. Coach had to be lying. She'd never lied before, but she had to be this time. Yes, she'd been in the Monthly before, but she'd never been asked to do a specific photoshoot. This was huge! She wondered what kind of shoot it was specifically. It was obviously going to be used to promote the upcoming Olympics, which meant they had seen something in her that they wanted to show. "No way! What kinda shoot? Did they say?" She was squirming where she stood, anxiously waiting for her coach to say what it was.

"They wanted to put you in for their Body Issue." Rin froze in place, her eyes wide and her jaw dropping. The Body Issue? No way... "I told them you'd give 'em a call back with your decision." She couldn't even move her lips to form a response. This was unbelievable. She'd always dreamed of the possibility of something like this happening, but for the Body Issue? That had never even occurred to her. Why would they think anyone would want to see her like that? There was no way... "Hoshizora? You still with me?"

"Huh? Uh, yeah, yeah. I'll, uh... I'll call them back later." She took the number from her coach, which had been written down on a scrap of paper. It was only a phone number, but it seemed so intimidating when she looked down at it. This was a blessing that had turned right into a curse in no time at all. The Body Issue was a pretty big deal: there was no doubt about that. However, one of the reasons why it was a pretty big deal was that it involved a multitude of athletes showing off their bodies and giving interviews about their athletic prowess and workout regiments. That last part was not a big deal. Showing off her body, however, was. She couldn't even take a shower with her ride or die teammates. How could she bare her body for the whole world to see?

She dropped the number in her bag and left the locker room. Getting into her car, she threw the bag onto the passenger seat and shut her eyes, breathing deeply. How could she possibly accept such an offer? It was embarrassing, sure, but more than that... it was terrifying.

* * *

When Maki got home from the hospital, she trudged upstairs to her bedroom. Work was always exhausting, but she wouldn't trade it for the world. Being a doctor meant she was making a difference in the world, and that was the second-most important thing in the world to her. It fell just short of Rin, though. Her girlfriend would always be the most important person in the world, and her job made good-enough money that they weren't ever wanting for anything. With Rin's popularity in the athletic world, they also weren't wanting for a lack of attention either. That part she could do with less of, but she'd gotten used to it as the years went on. She knew that people cheering for her made Rin happy, and in turn it made her happy too.

Opening the bedroom door, she could hear the shower running. She then nearly heard herself slamming into the floor as she tripped over Rin's bag, which had been left on the floor. "Gah! Ugh, dammit Rin!" Maki cursed out loud, balancing herself before reaching down to pick up the bag. Rin had a bad habit of leaving her stuff around the apartment, and no amount of cajoling or criticizing had made much of an impact. At this point, Maki had mostly accepted that she was going to have to be the one who picked things up around the house. Shaking her head, she put the bag on Rin's side of the dresser, then headed over to the closet to change out of her work clothes. That was when she noticed a piece of paper on the ground.

"Huh... What's this?" She bent down to pick it up, figuring that it must've fallen out of Rin's bag. Her eyes narrowed as she read the number scrawled on the scrap. So it was someone's number, then. But whose? It was probably something that involved track and field, since that's where Rin always was. What if was something else, though? It could be some place she needed to call, or a family member Maki wasn't aware of. Or... Or maybe it was another woman's number.

Ugh, she shouldn't think like that. Rin wouldn't cheat on her. They had a great relationship together. It wasn't like they were a couple who were together due to familial pressures, or because there was an unplanned pregnancy. They were together out of love, and she couldn't doubt that for a second. Though she had read an article once about the unbelievable amount of sex Olympic athletes had while participating in the Games, and she'd had trouble forgetting it since. It wasn't like that, though. This had to be just an innocent number. It couldn't be anything else. She really hoped it wasn't anything else...

"Maki?" She'd been standing there lost in thought for so long that she hadn't heard the shower turn off. Looking up, she saw Rin standing there with a towel wrapped around her body, confusion on her features. As soon as her thoughts had made their way back, they were immediately scrambled by the sight of her girlfriend in a towel. That was just a usual thing, honestly. It was hard not to be turned on when seeing someone so fit and hot with almost nothing covering them. It was also hard not to become jealous thinking about someone else passing their phone number to her and trying to get way too close to her than they should be.

"Whose number is this?" She held up the scrap of paper for Rin to see, trying to sound casual about it. Unfortunately, she sounded as casual as a three piece suit, as her stiff tone and narrowed eyes gave her away. Rin may not have done well in school, but she was no fool. Well, not as much of a fool as she'd been in school, anyway. She knew what Maki was thinking that number was for, and she knew she had to do damage control right away to avoid some very bad repercussions.

"It's a number my coach gave me. Athletics Monthly. You can look it up online if you want." A jealous Maki was not a fun Maki to be around. She needed to nip this one in the bud right away. Still, she was a bit frustrated with herself. She should've hidden that number better. In her mind, it felt uncomfortable to talk about what the magazine wanted from her out loud, but she knew that she'd have to now that Maki had seen it. She'd ask, and she wouldn't have any choice but to explain herself. Unless she wanted Maki to think that she was being unfaithful, which was even worse.

"No, I... I don't need to do that. I trust you." Swallowing nervously, Maki walked over and handed Rin the number, lifting a hand up to twirl a strand of hair around her finger. "So, uh, Athletics Monthly? What did they want?" She'd never even heard of the magazine before meeting Rin, but now she was more familiar with it. Admittedly, she'd only pick up an issue to see Rin in it specifically, as athletic events outside of whatever she was doing were still not all that interesting to her. She still wanted to show her support, though, since Rin had always shown support for what she did. It was only fair that she be a good partner and do the same.

"They, uh... They wanted to feature me in a photoshoot they're doing." Rin sighed and walked over to the bed, dropping the number on the nightstand and pacing back and forth next to the bed. She had wanted to sit down, but her towel was still wet from drying her off, and she knew that Maki would be upset if she got the sheets wet again. She was a bit upset herself: about the shoot and about her own worries that Maki thought she was doing stuff with other people.

"Really? That sounds great!" Maki smiled, but it quickly went away when she saw that Rin wasn't smiling. That was weird. This sounded like the kind of opportunity Rin dreamed of. In fact, she knew for a fact it was. She specifically remembered Rin mentioning it more than once in the past. "What's wrong? Isn't this a good thing?" Was she getting cold feet with a chance at her dreams finally being realized? That didn't make any sense, though. She couldn't think of many instances where Rin bailed on something, especially when it was something she really wanted. That just wasn't who she was. There had to be something more going on here.

"It's for the Body Issue."

"Oh." That would explain it. Maki had heard of this specific issue before. She'd seen its existence while browsing online once, so she knew what it entailed. That would explain why Rin was so down about something that sounded so good at first. Being so close to Rin gave her firsthand knowledge of her girlfriend's own body issues. She'd grown up feeling like she couldn't wear more feminine clothes because she didn't have a typical girl's body, and even as a fully grown and otherwise perfectly confident adult, that was still something that always seemed to haunt her. "Maybe you could go get dressed and we could talk about this?"

"Oh, uh, yeah, okay." Rin walked over to her side of the dresser, dropping her towel to the ground as she grabbed a tank top and a pair of panties. Maki gulped, her eyes focused directly on Rin's bare ass. She could understand why that magazine had asked her to be in that particular photoshoot. She turned away so that Rin didn't catch her perving on her ass. They were supposed to be having a serious conversation, and that would make things awkward. She needed to buck up and focus right now... uh, not on Rin's ass, she meant.

"So, what do you think about them asking you to do this?" Once Rin put some clothes on, she sat down on the bed, with Maki sitting next to her. She put an arm around Rin's shoulders and tried to keep her voice as level as possible. This was obviously something that had been worrying Rin today, and she wasn't going to push her into making any kind of decision. She wanted to be there for her, to give her own thoughts on the situation if applicable, and to help her through her worries and insecurities no matter how long it took. Sure, she'd always had trouble vocalizing her own emotions, but that didn't mean she wanted Rin to be as closed off as she'd been. They were partners after all, and partners told each other things.

"It's... It's tough." Rin sighed, leaning back on her hands and staring at the wall. "I mean, it's something that's really popular, and I know some of my teammates would be jealous if they knew I'd been asked to do it." She laughed, but it didn't have the same mirth it usually did. "It's a celebration of the different body types that athletes have, and I know that's really nice. It's awesome, honestly. I just... don't know why they asked me." It was supposed to showcase all kinds of athletes: to show that every body was beautiful. That was for everyone else, though. Hers was different. It just wasn't... right. It wasn't good enough for something like this.

"Rin..." Maki sighed and pulled Rin over to her, allowing Rin to lay her head on her shoulder. "You have a beautiful body. I know that you do. I tell you that all the time." Rin nodded slowly. It was true: Maki did say that quite often, and it made her feel better in the moment. Still, it was tough for her to fully believe it, even though it was coming from somebody she loved with all her heart. "The magazine must feel the same way, since they asked you."

"Yeah, I guess..." She closed her eyes and relaxed against Maki. What she was saying was true, but that didn't mean she was able to believe it any more. It was like... she didn't think they were liars, but they were just... wrong. The athletes in the Body Issue were always so good looking. They sure looked like athletes, and as for the female athletes, they also looked... well, feminine. She just couldn't see herself being in the same pages as them. They were all sexy and strong, and she wasn't. It didn't even sound sensible in her head, but she knew for a fact that she couldn't look like they did.

"I'm not going to make you do something you don't want to. It was tough enough getting you to dress properly for my family's dinner parties." Rin laughed, making Maki smile. She gently kissed Rin on top of her head, running her fingers through her girlfriend's short hair. "I think you belong in that shoot just as much as those other athletes do. Even more so, honestly. It's your decision to accept or decline, though, and I will support your decision no matter what."

"Thanks Maki." Rin tilted her head back, allowing Maki to kiss her. She closed her eyes and smiled faintly against Maki's lips, feeling calmer than she had at any point since she'd gotten the news from her coach. It didn't mean she was comfortable, but she at least knew that no matter what she decided, Maki would be there for her. That made her feel safe. She was lucky that she had Maki as her partner. "Hey, wouldn't you feel weird if I was naked in a magazine? I mean, everyone would see and all."

"As long as they're looking and not touching, I'm okay. I'm the one who gets to grab your butt whenever I want to." For emphasis, she reached under Rin to grab her ass, making her giggle and stick her tongue out at Maki.

"Pfft, you're such a perv, Maki."

* * *

"So you're sure about this?" Maki held her hand out, allowing Rin to squeeze it tightly. After some thinking, Rin had decided to accept the offer to be in the shoot. She wouldn't have been able to do that without Maki's support, including going to the shoot with her for further emotional support. Today was the day. They were standing outside of the building where the shoot was to take place, and she was feeling very nervous. There was a loud voice in her mind telling her to turn back before it was too late, but she did her best to tune it out. Accepting the offer made it feel like it was too late anyway.

"Yes, I'm sure." That wasn't technically true, but she was going to go through with it. She didn't want to admit her worries and talk herself out of it. Not when she was so close to actually doing it. Taking a deep breath, she walked to the doors, Maki walking step by step next to her. They both entered the building and went over to the front desk, where the receptionist directed them to the room where the shoot would take place. Standing outside of those doors, she could feel her nerves kicking into overdrive. She was sure that she was about to be sick.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm here for you." Maki turned Rin towards her, grabbing both of her hands and kissing her softly. "You'll always be my beautiful kitten. Promise." Rin smiled, pressing her forehead against Maki's before straightening up and reaching for the doorknob. She could do this. Maki was there to support her, and she'd been asked to do this. They wouldn't have asked for no reason. She was ready for this. She could do this. Taking one last deep breath, she twisted the knob and opened the door, stepping inside with Maki right behind her.

"Oh good, you're right on time." The photographer waved at the two women. It was just the three of them in the room. Everything seemed to be set up and ready. The photographer looked over at Maki, smiling at her. "I didn't know I was taking photographs of both of you today."

"Uh, no, it's... just of her." Maki pointed at Rin, blushing. The photographer nodded, smiling apologetically as she motioned for Rin to come over and stand in front of the canvas. Rin went over after one last look at Maki. She got the supportive look she needed, allowing her to go where she needed to go without much hesitation.

"Alright, now once you take off your clothes, we can begin taking photos." Well, the moment had arrived. Rin swallowed nervously, her hands shaking a bit as they hovered around the hem of her shirt. She looked over at Maki again, trying to siphon any confidence from her that she could. Maki smiled and gave her a thumbs up, mouthing 'I love you'. Smiling back, she felt that she had siphoned enough confidence to at least take her shirt off. It was like being at the beach, and she didn't have any problems being in a bikini there.

Removing her shirt and shorts ended up easier than she expected, but she felt another fresh batch of nerves hit her when she thought about what came next. She looked over at the photographer, but that just made her more nervous. It shouldn't have, since it was just like... like going to the gynecologist. They did this all the time, so it wouldn't be anything special. It was okay. She needed another look over at Maki. Yup, it was okay. She could do this. Biting her lower lip, she reached back to unhook her bra.

Her bra fell down to the ground, and her panties came down with them before she could talk herself out of it. The temptation to cover herself was great, but she forced her hands down. There was definitely no going back now. She was naked, and she was just going to have to own it. "Ma'am, do you think you can go grab your friend's clothing?" Rin looked over at the photographer, taking a moment to realize that she was talking to Maki. Nodding, Maki came over and scooped up all of Rin's clothes, giving her a reassuring smile and a lingering once-over before heading back out of the shot with a light blush on her face. Rin smiled to herself, feeling a bit better about the situation. At least her girlfriend still found her hot.

"Alright, I'd like to capture you in a running pose. It would be more natural if you were actually running." Rin looked around the room, quirking an eyebrow with her body facing sideways towards the camera. It was the only way she could think of sort of covering her nudity without actually doing it. "Ah, I know you probably think that'll be even more awkward. Don't worry, though. It'll look perfect on camera. No one else but will have to know but us in the room." That did make sense. She slowly nodded, trusting the photographer's judgement. "Alright, great! I'd also like you to have your left arm up as you run past the screen so it'll cover your chest. We're just softcore here: nothing more."

"Alright." Rin walked over to where Maki and the photographer were standing, focusing on the screen she needed to run past. She knew that she couldn't run at full speed, or the picture would come out blurry. She'd need to jog up there, but make it look like she was running like normal. That would be tough, but not impossible. This was actually nice to think about, since it helped distract her from the fact that she was standing there naked.

Putting a hand over her heart for a second, she started to jog in a looping arc towards the screen. She exaggerated the distance her legs went with each step to make it appear that she was actually running. As she neared the screen, she paid attention to her steps to make sure that her left arm would be up appropriately at the right time. It needed to look natural, or it wouldn't make much sense. Crossing the part that the camera could encapsulate, she lifted her arm and 'inadvertently' covered her chest, continuing to jog in a wide arc back to where she'd started from. Slowing down to a normal walk, she saw the photographer looking at the camera's screen, going over the photograph with a critical eye.

"Hmm... Yes, that does look good. Would you be okay with doing it one more time? This time from the other side." Rin nodded, figuring that another shot wasn't going to be any less nerve-wracking than the previous one. Besides, even jogging put her at least somewhat in the zone, and she was able to not think about it too much as she duplicated her actions from the other side. When she came back, the photographer seemed pleased with how it turned out. "That was very good, Ms. Hoshizora. These will definitely work. You can get dressed now, and please see the receptionist about the release timing of the magazine."

Rin took her clothes back from Maki and got dressed, shaking her head slightly as she let Maki lead her out of the room. When the door closed behind them, she leaned her back against it, breathing deeply. That had been one hell of an ordeal, but it was done. It wasn't as terrible and self-loathing inducing as she'd expected. The build up to the actual moment was worse than the moment itself. Now it was over, and the pictures had been taken. She couldn't do anything about them now. She'd have to wait to see how they turned out.

The two of them went up to the front desk, where Rin gave the receptionist their address so they could send a copy of the magazine to her. They also exchanged email addresses so she could send them a little something about her training in written form for the magazine. Then there was nothing left to do but to head home. "You did good." Maki reassured her as they walked through the parking lot, holding her hand again. "I'm sure you're going to be the star of the shoot."

"Pfft, c'mon, Maki." Rin lightly slapped her shoulder, smiling and blushing at Maki's confident words. She was sure that wouldn't be the case, but it was kind of her to say. Overall, she felt okay. Having Maki there had helped her, and now that it was over, she didn't feel as self-conscious as she'd expected. Maybe she really could have the kind of body that was both athletic and sexy.

"So, um... Seeing you in there without your clothes and all was really nice." Maki blushed, looking out at the cars in the parking lot to avoid looking at Rin. "Maybe you'd want to... do stuff when we get home." Rin perked up instantly. She nodded hard, then realized that Maki wasn't looking at her. Of course. Even after being together for this long, Maki still wasn't comfortable saying those kinds of things out loud. She grinned to herself and squeezed Maki's hand tightly.

"Absolutely! You know, we could always get started in the car-"

"Absolutely not."

"Damn."

* * *

The latest edition of Athletics Monthly came out just before the Olympics started, but Rin refused to acknowledge it. She'd already made sure that, as best she could, she wouldn't know anything about the magazine until the Olympics were over. Knowing that it was out there did drive her bonkers with nervousness, but she couldn't risk the distraction it posed. Not with the competition ongoing. She needed her focus on the track: not on a magazine. It worried her that maybe her picture wouldn't look so good, and then it'd be on her mind the entire Olympics. Her skills would take a hit, and she'd let her team down during their most important moments. So she told Maki and her coach that she didn't want to know anything about the issue. Nothing at all. That was for later. Right now she had some medals to win.

When the Olympics were over, and everything had wound down, Rin found herself sitting on the couch with Maki, a gold medal around her neck. She'd won several medals, but this was the lone gold that she got, and she was most proud of that one. It'd been a team effort, and she wore it happily. Now that it was all done with, and she was back in her own apartment, she could finally hold the magazine in her hands for the first time. It felt more real now than it had when she'd had the pictures taken. Once she opened the magazine, it would be oh so real.

"You okay?" Maki put a hand on Rin's, looking at her with concern. Rin nodded and smiled, using her other hand to flip open the magazine. She was gonna be okay. It already happened. She was just worried about actually seeing it with her own eyes, but she could do it. Hell, she was a gold medal Olympian now. She was strong enough to do this. She flipped to the section that held the specific 'Body' part of the issue, then started to go through them one at a time. With a laugh, she stopped for a moment and pointed at one of the athletes shown in the issue.

"You're not gonna believe this, but this guy thinks the Earth is flat."

"What?" Maki scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. "You're right. I don't. There's no way anyone believes that."

"He says it's a government conspiracy." She grinned widely at the affronted look on Maki's face. This was just a distraction, though. She needed to keep going or she'd find other ways to psych herself out. Her fingers flipped over page after page until finally she reached herself. The two of them looked down at her photograph, seeing exactly what the photographer had asked for: her in a running pose, her arm covering her chest to hide any nudity. Well, any upper nudity, apparently. The curve of her ass still left little to the imagination. It appeared the photographer had gone with the first photo that she'd taken.

"Well, here it is." Rin gulped and took another look at the photo. It... wasn't so bad. She looked over herself, finding that she didn't hate what she was seeing. Flipping back to a couple other photos, she could see that she didn't look all that out of place. There were even other female athletes who looked pretty similar to her in body type, with short hair and all. She... She kinda liked it, honestly.

"So, you wanted to frame this, right?" Maki glanced over at Rin, only temporarily looking away from the photograph. She liked how it turned out, just as Rin did. She may have liked it a little bit more, though. A light blush crept to her cheeks as she shifted slightly closer to Rin. Leaning her head against Maki's, Rin nodded. She didn't want to frame it with the photo out and proud, since she didn't want her naked self plastered on the wall for others to come over and stare at. Just the front of the magazine. They'd both know its significance anyway.

"Mhm."

"Would you mind if I made a copy of your picture beforehand?" She tried to act casual about it, but the blush on her cheeks gave her away. Smiling, Rin set the magazine down on the floor and pushed herself on top of Maki, making the two of them topple over. She kissed Maki, who was more than happy to reciprocate right away. Pulling away, she ran her tongue over Maki's lips, grinning from ear to ear.

"You know, if you wanted a naked pic, you could've just asked." She laughed at the blush growing deeper on Maki's face, and she dipped down to kiss her again. No matter how she felt about herself and her looks, at least she had Maki to make her feel better. Her love and appreciation had never wavered, and she could never thank her enough for that. The photoshoot was something that she'd never forget, but in a positive way. Maybe she could learn to accept and love everything about herself. At least a little.


End file.
